INTERACTION

Black Static 43 is now live on Smashwords and Amazon sites will follow in about 10 hours.

Arrived today in Cheltenham along with its buddy Interzone.

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www.rosswarren.co.uk

Got it in Norwich yesterday too. On my desk at work to start reading today

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www.andrew-hook.com

Arrived in drizzly Edinburgh yesterday. I had some pretty weird dreams last night...

Finished reading Black Static. Thought both columns were very interesting, especially Volk's on the connection between writer's block and depression.

Fiction:

Drown Town - Great concept! Loved the whole idea of it, although for me it got a bit technical regarding the underwater stuff at the end.

Ishq - One of my favourite stories this issue. Richly evocative.

Night Templar - Had the pleasure of hearing Simon read a draft of this story at FantasyCon recently and enjoyed seeing it on the page.

Hide - Short and sweet with a great last line.

Black Lung - This is my story, of course, so I won't comment on it. But I have blogged about the genesis of the story here if anyone is interested. (Thanks also to Pete Tennant's favourable review of my novel in this issue).

Many-Eyed Monsters - Interesting variation on a common theme. I liked how the feeling of euphoria could well turn out to be a mixed blessing.

Overall another enjoyable issue!

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www.andrew-hook.com

Arrived (with IZ 255) in sunny SW France yesterday.

If I didn't make it clear in my actual real time review of Interzone 255 and Black Static 43, I do love the Ralph Robert Moore story - http://dflewisreviews.wordpress.com/201 ... static-43/

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MY WEBSITE: www.nemonymous.com

Another smashing issue. The non-fiction raised the bar once again with great columns and reviews and a fascinating author interview.

As for the fiction:

Drown Town - A gripping story that absolutely held my attention throughout. Not sure how plausible some of the elements were but the prose and characterisation were top notch.

Ishq - My favourite story of the issue. A fully immersive setting and an unsettling premise combined to great effect.

Night Templar - Simon's fiction rarely disappoints and this is a story rich in back-story that probably warrants expansion to a longer form.

Hide - Slight and rather one-note. Suffers when held against the engrossing stories that accompany it.

Black Lung - Always enjoy stories that blur the line between our waking minds and our sub-conscious and this was no exception. Superbly written, with some spot-on character observations.

Many-Eyed Monsters - Not my cup of tea at all. Felt thematically and stylistically at odds with the rest of the fiction in this issue.

Roll on issue 44!

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www.rosswarren.co.uk

Another grand issue.

Two of the best non-fiction columns in ages (and Volk and Rucker are both consistently good.) Steve V's on writer's block and depression was painfully honest and hit a chord with me - and most writers, I suspect. Lynda's was a very welcome breath of rationality on the whole HPL/WFA brouhaha.

I loved Drown Town. Fantastic idea, great characters, told without wasting a word.

Black Lung: a bit elliptical for me. I'll have to reread it.

Many-Eyed Monsters: the odd one out in some ways, but I really liked it nonetheless. It reminded me of something that might have appeared in the old TTA days.

Ishq: Story of the issue. Beautifully written and characterised; a rich and heartbreaking tale.

The book reviews are as always thorough and indepth, and the James Cooper interview made fascinating reading.

So all told the quality threshold remains as high as ever.

Thanks for that Simon x